Sewing Machine Artistry Blog

I'm expecting some more people to stop by and visit, after the Sulky webinar today! I just wanted to say hello and thank you for visiting me. I hope you enjoyed the webinar. It was a lot of fun to compile something new especially for you! While you're here, let me point out a couple things.

If you haven't done so, please sign up to be one of my Sewing Friends! The link is at the top of the left column. I have been doing a lot of work behind the scenes and things are starting to come to fruition. I don't want you to miss out!

You can find The Ultimate Stabilizer Class under the Shop Tab, and the Facebook Live class is under that icon. I will be adding more classes, so stay tuned. And, if you prefer a webinar based class, please let me know. Send me an email here.

Also in the left hand column is my affiliate link to the Sulky webstore. It would mean the world to me if you could click on it before you place an order with Sulky. I'll get a little bonus, and the prices of the items don't change for you!

Mark your calendar for UFO Friday this week, May 29, 2020 @ 3pm EDT (Washington DC). It is held on my Facebook page, Sewing Machine Artistry. Set up with a UFO you want to work on and join us. Feel free to jump in the conversation by commenting during the broadcast. And, share some of your sewing related pictures with me of your projects, questions or suggest a topic for discussion. You can email them to me at Michelle@SewingMachineArtistry.com. If you write to me before UFO Friday, I'll be able to prepare and share your pictures! If you can't come to UFO Friday, you can watch the replay later. I hope to see you there!

I would like to invite you to join this special Sulky webinar. A couple years ago, I had to stop hosting the webinars because my sewing career blossomed. This time, I'm back as a special guest, and I hope that you can join us.

There will be two lectures during this webinar. I will be giving a presentation on stabilizers. More specifically how you can use them in garment construction, serging, machine embroidering and everyday sewing! Ellen March will be talking about appliqué.

There will be amazing door prizes too! The best ones I have seen yet!

Click here or on the picture above to register. If you can't attend when it's live, register and watch it later!

I promised you links to two really good videos that we watched during the LIVE stream. So here they are!

Here's Londa Rohling demonstrating how she folds fabric to cut bias strips. I love this method! After you have made your cuts, you simply sew the strips of fabric together. Londa even shows you where to sew.

Here's another super helpful short video of my friend, Pam Damour, showing me how to fold the parallelogram to make continuous bias binding. I'm striving to master this one!

I hope you all are doing well and staying healthy. Be sure to become one of my Sewing Friends to learn about upcoming UFO Fridays!

So, what is UFO Friday? I has absolutely nothing with little green men, spaceships or Area 51. This is sewing lingo for UnFinished prOjects. Many of us have a PhD, Projects Half Done! So set yourself up and work on your UFO while you play this video. I was inspired to establish UFO Friday for a couple reasons. First, I wanted to connect with and make new sewing friends. I wanted to give everyone time to escape the Coronavirus and take a moment for themselves. Viewers are welcome to work on a UFO or take a break and watch.

Here's a Recap:

During this Facebook Live broadcast, I showed one of my UFOs, the Sulky Simply Applique Spring banner.

I also showed you how to cut to the chase and set up The Thread Director.

I also ended with a quick demonstration on how I did the machine embroidery quilting using the scanning feature built into IQ Designer on the Baby Lock Solaris.

I love audience participation, and encourage attendees to send in sewing related pictures, questions or topics you would like to talk about.

I promised you that UFO Friday is not about me selling you something. However, my UFO just so happened to be something that is available through my affiliate link to the Sulky website. So, if you are interested in purchasing some metallic thread, The Thread Director or any of the four Seasons with Sulky Applique kits, please consider using my affiliate link. I'd really appreciate your support.

The next UFO Friday is scheduled for April 17, 2020 at 3pm EDT (Washington DC). Sign up to be one of my Sewing Friends and you will receive notices announcing UFO Friday.

If you know of anyone who has a sewing machine tucked away inside their closet, and they find themselves wanting to make masks for their family or their community, share this with them.

It's a recording of a Facebook Live stream I did for my friends who don't know how to sew AT ALL!!!

This video is for absolute beginners. I go over the basics and explain enough about the machine without going into too much detail. Plus, I make a mask step-by-step, explaining what kind of household items they can use instead of sewing notions that we appreciate. I go nice and slow and explain the process so they can understand.

I'm sharing this with you because many people told me it was helpful. It was even shared more than I thought it would be.

Wouldn't it be nice to recruit new sewers! I am actually mentoring someone now, and she is doing amazing! She has made more masks than me, and she has a young baby at home and is still working full-time!

Thank you, everyone, for your comments. I enjoyed reading them all. The winner is...Dottie Dunham!!!! I honestly did a random drawing and my dear mom won! Congratulations Mom! This is so sweet. I don't get to see her often because we live so far apart. I'll drop this in the mail to you! Love you Mom!!!

Hello and welcome to my website!!! I'm so happy you are here. Happy National Embroidery Month! This has been an amazing tour with lots of inspiration and creativity, and there's lots more on the way!

When I was asked to join the 2019 Stitch Along Tour, I was thrilled because I love Designs in Machine Embroidery and working with pre-printed panels. I really enjoy doing machine embroidery and working with Baby Lock's IQ Designer, so this project was a perfect match for me!!! My twist on the new Farmhouse Collection - Sentiments by dime, was "sew" much fun.

I started this project using a Baby Lock Destiny, and about halfway through this project I got my Solaris!!! Happy Dance!!! So, of course, I had to let "Tinkerbell" play too! I used Sulky 40 wt. Rayon thread for the embroidery in a variety of colors.

I always test embroidery designs before I stitch them out. I also wanted to audition my ideas before stitching on the "real" panel, so here's what I did. I hooped Sulky Soft 'n Sheer™ Stabilizer, or you can use Baby Lock No-Show Mesh Stabilizer. As you can see in this picture, I made a free standing appliqué (heart) and I embroidered the lettering directly onto the stabilizer. After I trimmed away the stabilizer, I was able to get a better idea as to what it would look liked stitched onto the panel. I love this auditioning technique!!!

I pinned the heart in place and hooped the panel. At the machine (Destiny), I scanned the hooped fabric with the heart still pinned in place. Then, I was able to line up the design exactly where I wanted it to stitch ~ awesome!

This is a beautiful appliqué design, and I wanted to put a twist on it. I found the red gingham fabric in my stash, and it had a tendency to fray! I thought it would be perfect to give the panel a shabby appeal! I used my Clover Patchwork scissors to snip around the edges of the fabric for an even shabbier look.

Next, I focused on some fun features in IQ Designer that I'm so excited to share with you. Now, just to back up a little...prior to stitching the heart on the panel, I hooped the panel and scanned it in IQ Designer.

I used the Line and Fill properties in IQ Designer to trace around the letters and fill the letters with a satin stitch. I chose to work in the color red because it was more visible. I had so much fun doing this that I forgot to take a more current picture, but here's a picture of the time I practiced on the letter "t" in the word "Gather." When I was ready to start for real, I started from the beginning with the word "The."

When you save the artwork in IQ Designer and convert it to an embroidery design, the embroidery design is in the exact place where it needs to stitch, as long as you don't re-hoop! It's very important to note that I did not re-hoop my panel. Shown below is "The Gathering Place" design in the embroidery mode. Notice how I was able to zoom in 200%, so I could take a closer look. And, if I wanted to make any fine adjustments, I could have used the directional arrows to move the design.

Here it is, stitching out exactly as planned!!!! This is so exciting!

A lot of times when I work, I come up with new ideas at different stages. It turns out that I sewed on the border next! I love using Clover Wonder Clips, especially since I have a "help-purr" in my sewing room who likes to steal pins!

Perfect timing...the Solaris arrived! This was the perfect opportunity to use the projector to project the floral spray on the panel exactly where I wanted it. The projector is revolutionary and makes perfect placement so easy!

I really had fun using IQ Designer to transform the black border fabric!!!! Shown is the image of the scanned fabric. As you can see, I have just a wee bit more to finish!

I used the brush tool in the fill properties menu to "brush" exactly where I wanted the decorative fill stitching.

I used the Dual Feed Foot with the open toe foot attachment to stitch in the ditch between the panel and the border. If you aren't familiar with the Dual Feed Foot, it has a belt that you can't see in this picture. The belt helps to move the fabric from the top while the feed dogs move the fabric from the bottom! A really great foot to use when working with multiple layers!!! You can't tell in this picture, but I used Sulky 40 wt. Rayon thread in a variegated black and gray.

I used a Clover Bias Tape Maker to make the bias tape for the binding.

This was a lot of fun, and I hope you enjoyed reading about how I transformed the panel using my Baby Lock Destiny and Solaris machines, and IQ Designer.

To enter to win the Farmhouse Collection - Sentiments panel kit, please leave a comment below. Be sure to include your first name and the initial of your last name in the comments. You can include your city and/or state if you want. I need a way to address you when I announce the winner. You can get another chance to win if you like my Sewing Machine Artistry Facebook page and comment there too!!! You can use the Facebook link at the top of this page to find my Facebook page. If you already like my page, please leave a comment on my Facebook page. I'll draw a random winner on Fri-yay, February 15th, 2019 at 12:00 noon EST!!! Be sure to come back and check out my Facebook page and/or website to find out if you are the winner!!!

Thank you you so much for joining me here, and I hope you have a Happy Valentine’s Day!!!

Disclaimer: Now for my public service announcement...This post contains affiliate links directly to the Sulky website. When you shop using my special link, I will receive a small percentage from the sale, but the price you pay and any ongoing sales will be the same as if you visited the Sulky website directly. I appreciate you using my affiliate link if you need some supplies from Sulky. I am also a Baby Lock Ambassador of Education and a demonstrator for Clover Needlecraft, and whenever possible, I promote their products as well but do not have an affiliate relationship with them. To inquire about sewing supplies and Baby Lock machines, be sure to visit your local authorized Baby Lock retailer.

I'm starting to get caught up on some things I have been wanting to do. I recorded on Facebook Live last week. On Sunday, I posted a picture of something I was making on Facebook. That picture generated a lot of interaction, and I intend to follow up with another Facebook Live soon.

In the meantime, enjoy SCHMETZ Inspired to SEW # 53. This is a FREE monthly publication from Schmetz. I've received this magazine for years now, and each time I dreamed of posting it for you, my Sewing Friends, to read and enjoy before it is made public on June 1st. Well, today is the day! I'm doing it!!! Enjoy!!!

This issue is about sewing and quilting retreats. It's a great article that spells out the different types of retreats and retreat centers.

Speaking of which, I live near a YMCA camp!!! I walk to this camp at least once every single day! For over a year now, I've been dreaming of having my Sewing Friends gather here for our own retreat. How do you like that idea?

That is "sew" scary to see in writing because I am one of those people who plan a party and no one comes.

Heidi and I took a quick break and walked over to the camp and took a few pictures for you.

Welcome to YMCA Camp West Mar!

Here's an overview of the cabins. The two on the left have bunk beds and can sleep 16 people each. The blue one and the white one to the right have single beds and sleep 8 each. The cabin to the far right is like a game room with a TV and pool table. The blinds to the cabin in the center were closed so I could not take a peek inside. Just to the left of the blue cabin is a bathhouse.

I was able to get an okay shot through the window of the inside of one of the cabins with bunk beds. In the far right is a bedroom for camp counselors. That would make a nice changing room, in my opinion. In the far left is a sitting area. I think these are pretty darn nice accommodations for the YMCA!

This is the Mess Hall. There is a bathroom inside. It did not have tables set up inside, so I didn't bother taking a picture of an empty room. I'm sure they have tables in storage somewhere. There is a full kitchen in the Mess Hall too.

Here's a nice outdoor pavilion with a stage. Normally there are tables and chairs here. They too must be in storage.

A nice pool and the other bathhouse. The pool would cost extra to have a lifeguard on duty. I could not look inside either bathhouse to take any photos. I know a decent bathroom is important.

Here's Heidi sitting next to the outdoor firepit. She's smart. She knew I did not have any treats for a nice pose. One of the disadvantages of having a smart dog! Just goes to prove, you get what you pay for!

The grounds also have an amphitheater, an archery range, a basketball court and a very modern spiderweb climbing playset. And, nice walking paths!!!

Lastly the pond.

I live close to a regional airport in Hagerstown, Maryland and about an hour drive from four airports: Baltimore-Washington Thurgood Marshall International Airport (BWI), International Airport at Dulles (IAD), and two airports, I don't normally use Regan (Washington, DC) and Harrisburg, PA.

There are plenty of major roads accessible to me such as Interstates 70, 81 and the Pennsylvania Turnpike.

So, let's brainstorm together! In the comments section, tell me whether or not this sounds like a good idea to you. What do you want in a retreat? Comments about food...chip in and make it ourselves, have someone cook for us, or catered? Trust me, you do not want me to cook! Besides, I'm a vegetarian!! Would you like to work on your own projects? Would you like me to teach a class? Would you like a weekend-long retreat or a few days? Cost...what's that magical number that makes it too costly? What time of the year too? If I were to plan something for 2018, it would have to be October or later, if it's available. The camp is occupied during the months of June, July, and August with summer campers.

If you prefer to send me an email, my address is Michelle@SewingMachineArtistry.com.

I'll follow the comments and review them after all my traveling is done in June.

I'm so excited for 2018! I really think this is going to be a big year for me. Thanks for following me on this journey!

So, I did my first Facebook LIVE video today, and I liked it! I'll post it as soon as I can teach myself how to download it from Facebook and upload it here. Rut-roh!!! The sound was horrible so I deleted the video. However, I figured out how to upload it here the next time!

Are you interested in taking a class from me in the Hagerstown, Maryland area? I'd love to teach you how to make the Cell Phone Wallet from Hold Everything Purses, Totes and More! written by Pam Damour and Betty Mitchell. I am now a Certified National Educator for Pam Damour!

Holy Smokes!!! I've been working with Eileen Roche of Designs in Machine Embroidery for several weeks now, in preparation for tonight's webcast, Quilt with An Embroidery Machine. She certainly has been fantastic to work with, but I was so surprised to see my name and website mentioned in her latest blog! Thank you so, so, much Eileen!!!

If you haven't signed up for this webcast yet, you don't want to miss out. There's still time to register, and if you cannot make it to the live event, you will be able to watch a recording afterwards. I'll just send you over to Sulky's site to register. It's tonight, March 23rd, 2017. Please note that the correct time for the webcast is 9:00pm EDT.

I just love her entertaining writing style as she recapped our dress rehearsal yesterday. Read her blog post here:

Well, if you are visiting me for the first time you can see that I haven't been keeping up with my posts they way I want. That's because I have been traveling across the country working at expos, teaching classes and making webinars. There just never seems to be enough time for everything.

P.S. This post contains my affiliate link to the Sulky website. By using my special link to register for the webcast, I will receive a little commission if you purchase something from Sulky. Thank you for using my affiliate link! I appreciate your support.